Wednesday, April 25, 2012

We will remember them

Anzac day.  A day off for some, an excuse to sleep in.  Not for us.  I've always gone to Anzac Day parades all my life.   Well a lot of them I have played in a brass band at.  But now I just go to pay homage to the brave men and women.  It's a lot different in a small country town, a lot more intimate, a day when some of the elderly folk of the town are celebrated as the heros they are.   Each year we actually head out of town and Mike plays at Penshurst, a really lovely little parade with less and less soldiers each time.   There looked to be only three originals this year, two of them in wheelchairs, with the rest of the parade consisting of other family members.   Mike is the piped piper leading them along.

And whilst it appeared that the rest of the state was getting a drenching, strangely enough the sun shone at Penshurst.

When Mike marched them back to the hall for the service after the laying of the wreaths, he played "Waltzing Matilda".  It sounds strange, and yet oddly fitting played on pipes on Anzac Day.

We raced back home after the parade to turn on the telly and five minutes later saw Mike's dad marching past as part of the RAF contingent in the big parade in Melbourne.

Then the rest of the day has become a lovely lazy Wednesday.   Back to work tomorrow.

I have scrapped this photograph taken of my grandpa from when he was a young soldier in the war.

Photobucket

Credits Designer Digitals

I wonder what grandpa would think, me scrapping this strapping young soldier with flowers in the background.  I turned the photo into a sticker here, I think it is a really different look.

So on this Anzac Day, we will remember them.

1 comment:

Lynne said...

Sounds like you had a lovely day - but I bet you went to bed early!

I like the artistic rending of your grandfather's photo.